Three Breaths of Fresh Air after Trump's Wind

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  Donald Trump's latest ghoulish  pronouncement is that he's happy the trade war could lead to 3 million Chinese unemployed.The figure is exaggerated as usual, but it shows once again a total lack of concern about human suffering.

Compare this with three items in our New Zealand news and thank God we live where we do.

Our New Race Relations Commissioner
First up is our new Race Relations Commissioner, Meng Foon, a man equally comfortable in Maori, Chinese and Pakeha society, and fluent in three languages.

Our trail of tears: the story of Ihumātao by historian Vincent O'Malley

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The usual Pākeha reporters, quick on opinions and short on facts (need they be named?) see  the Ihumātao debacle as a simple case of some Maori breaking the law, and Jacinda Ardern allowing them to get way with it by halting further action while calling for all parties to join in discussion.  I see this a step by a wise Prime Minister, anxious to ensure all sides are properly heard. Historian Vincent O'Malley sees it as another example of an unfair and unresolved past. -- ACW

The tino rangatiratanga flag is seen at Ihumātao as the day draws to an end for protesters on the land on Friday 26 July (Photo: RNZ)

The current standoff at Ihumātao has deep roots in the legacy of colonialism and land confiscation. Historian Vincent O’Malley writes in The Spinoff about how it was taken by the Crown, and why that matters today.